A heroic military dog is to be honoured with the animal version of the Victoria Cross. Treo, an eight-year-old black Labrador, saved countless lives in Afghanistan last year by locating hidden roadside bombs.

The search dog twice saved soldiers and civilians from catastrophe while out on patrol in Helmand province by sniffing out explosives which had been wired together in a daisy chain and hidden in the path. Princess Alexandra will award the dog with the Dickin Medal at a ceremony at the Imperial War Museum on February 24.

The medal was created by leading veterinary charity the PDSA and is recognised as the highest award an animal can receive for conspicuous gallantry or devotion to duty while serving in military conflict.Treo will be accompanied at the ceremony by his handler, Sergeant Dave Heyhoe. The team have worked together for five years.PDSA director general Jan McLoughlin said: “We look forward to honouring Treo with the PDSA Dickin Medal.More

There are actually more pet cats in the United States than dogs, yet dogs firmly hold the title of man’s best friend. Many say it’s because dogs are easier to understand.But “Early Show” resident veterinarian Dr. Debbye Turner Bell offered a lesson in de-coding your feline friend’s behavior.Bell explained cats are just as social and expressive as dogs.She said, “You just have to know how to speak their language.”

Helen Abramsom owns six cats, and believes cats are perfect communicators.She told Bell, “I believe cats, in general, are almost human-like.”Bell asked Abramson whether she feels she knows what her cats are thinking and how they feel at any given moment. “I do,” Abramson responded, “because each cat is unique in their own way. They have different meows that I recognize.”More

There are actually more pet cats in the United States than dogs, yet dogs firmly hold the title of man’s best friend. Many say it’s because dogs are easier to understand.But “Early Show” resident veterinarian Dr. Debbye Turner Bell offered a lesson in de-coding your feline friend’s behavior.Bell explained cats are just as social and expressive as dogs.She said, “You just have to know how to speak their language.”

Helen Abramsom owns six cats, and believes cats are perfect communicators.She told Bell, “I believe cats, in general, are almost human-like.”Bell asked Abramson whether she feels she knows what her cats are thinking and how they feel at any given moment. “I do,” Abramson responded, “because each cat is unique in their own way. They have different meows that I recognize.”More

Snails may split into different species rapidly precisely because they move so slowly, scientists now suggest.These new findings could explain why some kinds of organisms have far more species than others.

Different populations of one species begin splitting into new species when they stop mating with each other. As such, evolutionary biologists Yael Kisel and Tim Barraclough at Imperial College London conjectured that snails and other lifeforms that occupy tiny areas might form new species more readily than others that get around more, reasoning that slowpokes are more likely to love the ones they’re with than they are to pursue long-distance relationships.

To test their idea, the researchers surveyed the rates of species formation, or speciation, in plants and animals across 64 islands in the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans.More

A team of scientists has documented that Yasuní National Park, in the core of the Ecuadorian Amazon, shatters world records for a wide array of plant and animal groups, from amphibians to trees to insects.The authors also conclude that proposed oil development projects represent the greatest threat to Yasuní and its biodiversity.“This study demonstrates that Yasuní is the most diverse area in South America, and possibly the world,” said Dr. Peter English of The University of Texas at Austin. “Amphibians, birds, mammals and vascular plants all reach maximum diversity in Yasuní.”

The study is published in the open-access scientific journal PLoS ONE.“We have so far documented 596 bird species occurring in Yasuni,” said English, a bird specialist. “That’s incredible diversity to find in just one corner of the Amazon rainforest and rivals any other spot on the planet.”Other specialists joined in to give the first complete picture of the extraordinary diversity found in Yasuní National Park.

“The 150 amphibian species documented to date throughout Yasuní is a world record for an area of this size,” said Shawn McCracken of Texas State University. “There are more species of frogs and toads within Yasuní than are native to the United States and Canada combined.”More